NCJ Number
178823
Journal
Police: The Law Enforcement Magazine Volume: 23 Issue: 9 Dated: September 1999 Pages: 24-29
Date Published
September 1999
Length
6 pages
Annotation
A Special Weapons and Tactical Team (SWAT) must include trained personnel who can rapidly treat the wounded on site while being equipped and trained to protect themselves and the wounded from any suspects who continue to pose a threat.
Abstract
TEMS is an acronym for Tactical Emergency Medical Support. TEMS is that segment of emergency medicine that deals specifically with the unique needs of police, State, and Federal tactical response units. TEMS personnel should be trained to accompany SWAT teams into dangerous situations such as the Columbine High School massacre and treat the wounded as rapidly as possible, even before it is clear that a crime scene is secure. TEMS can save lives that may not be saved under traditional procedures used by paramedics, who typically must wait to provide medical services until the SWAT team has secured the site of the wounded. TEMS training allows the medical support component to fully understand all aspects of law enforcement tactical operations and the roles and responsibilities of each team member. One of the fundamentals of a tactical team is the ability to anticipate and plan for adverse outcomes and deal with the problem accordingly. Medical personnel operating in the tactical environment must also develop this skill. The objective of such training should be to teach emergency medical teams, paramedics, and physicians the fundamentals of tactical operations in conjunction with the integration and application of emergency medical services. With this body of knowledge and skills, graduates are able to integrate with a tactical team as a tactically safe medical provider.